John Durkin

1974, New Hampshire. Democrat John Durkin (above, at right) was not expected to win the Senate race in this typically Republican state. But when his heavily favored opponent, Louis Wyman (above, at left) only won by about 350 votes, Durkin called foul and away they went. A subsequent recount declared Durkin the victor by a mere 10 votes. The state ballot commission declared Wyman the winner by two votes. The election was brought before the Senate, which debated the issue along party lines, many times while the two candidates sat in the back listening. It took until August 1975 for the august body to say, "Maybe we'll just leave it vacant." In September a special election was held and Durkin won by a fairly decisive 27,000 votes.